Dust to Dust
by Tukiko Miyuki
Summary: Probably should be rate T but rated M just in case. Ren, along with her two friends, find their way to the Greene farm, where they are allowed to stay. Though she is a bit withdrawn from everyone, she finds herself becoming closer to the resident redneck.
1. Prologue

Chapter Prologue

"_Intuition will tell the thinking mind were to look next." Jonas Salk_

It was another hot, sweltering, summer day in Alabama. Ren felt as if she had already sweated a bucket's worth and it was only just half passed twelve. She shoveled yet another pile of manure into the wheelbarrow. From outside the stall, Ren heard Garnet nicker softly. She poked her head out of the stall and scowled playfully at the Arabian mare. "What are ya laughin at, huh?" The horse tossed her head about as she pawed at the ground anxiously. Ren frowned at the behavior of her horse. Garnet was never one to get anxious unless something was wrong. In the two stalls on the right, Ren could hear her two remaining horses shifting nervously about and letting out whinnies of concern.

Ren stepped out of Garnet's stall with her shovel clutched tightly in her hands. Glancing around the small stable, she saw nothing immediately that screamed danger, but Ren didn't fool herself into thinking that everything was just fine. Just because you can't see the danger, doesn't mean it's not there. A noise from outside the stable drew Ren's attention. It had sounded a bit strange. Almost like a mix between a groan and a hiss. She froze at the sound, unsure as to what could make such a sound. What if it was one of those cannibals that the news had warned the public about? From the clips on the news, they made strange noises like that too.

As she stood, debating what to do, a figure shambled into the door way of the stable. Ren tensed, fully prepared to strike the figure with her shovel until she saw who was standing in front of her. Relaxing her muscles, Ren let an irritated sigh. "Nate! Don't scare me like that! I thought ya might have been one of those infected people!"

Nate threw his head back and laughed at the clear annoyance displayed on Ren's face. "I'm sorry! I just couldn't resist!"

Ren scowled at the dark haired man. Nate was often doing this sort of thing when he came over to visit with Melanie. She remembered one time after he found out her fear of dolls, Nate decided to decorate her house with the toys. To this day, she still shudders at the memory of walking into her house, only to be surrounded by a number of creepy dolls staring at her. Ren had refused to speak or even look at Nate for weeks after that incident. Of course, she eventually forgave the man; after some convincing from Melanie.

"Where's Melanie?" Ren questioned as she leaned the shovel against the outside of the stall.

"Out on the porch," Nate answered as he shoved his hands in his pockets. He stayed still as he watched Ren shoved a green wheelbarrow out of the stall before untying Garnet and leading her back inside said stall.

"I see. How come you're not with her? You two usually just wait for me at the house…"

Nate shifted his weight around at the question. What she said was true. Usually he and Melanie did wait back at the house for Ren to finish up her chores before doing whatever they were in the mood for. But today was a bit different. Nate needed to speak with Ren in private and he felt that now was the best time to do it. "Seren…There was something I wanted to talk to you about."

Ren paused at the sound of her full name. It was a bit strange to hear Nate call her that, as he usually ever called her by her nickname. This was how she knew whatever Nate needed to speak to her about, it was serious. Ren turned towards him fully and give him her full attention, her eyebrows furrowed in concern. "What is it Nate?"

Seeing Ren's worry, Nate raised a hand in the air. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Actually, I wanted to tell you I plan on asking Melanie to marry me."

Ren gasped, her piercing cyan eyes widening and a smile spreading across her lips. "Really?! I'm so happy for ya!"

Nate chuckled at Ren's excitement. "Don't congratulate me yet. I haven't even asked her yet and even then she might not say yes."

Ren rolled her eyes at the statement. "Please. There's no doubt in my mind, she's going to say yes."

"Think so?"

"Absolutely," Ren replied with a reassuring smile.

Nate let out a breath of relief. "That's good. Anyways, I was hoping you'd be there when I pop the question. I know she would like for you to be there as well. It would mean so much to the both of us."

"Are you sure? I mean I don't want to be a third wheel or anything…" Ren answered uneasily. She usually ended up being a third wheel when it came of her friends and the people they were dating; though most of the time, everyone would deny such an accusation. And it usually was Ren that was placed in that position. Of course, that was to be expected considering Ren had never really been in a relationship before, despite her being a twenty-eight year old woman.

Nate shook his head and gave her a sincere smile. "You'll never be a third wheel to us, Ren. You should know that by now."

A small smile of her own swept across Ren's face. "Yeah. Yeah, I'll gladly be there for the both of ya."

"Thanks." Nate jerked his head in the direction of Ren's house. "Shall we go on to the house?"

Ren started to nod but stopped when she remembered how her horses had been acting before Nate showed up. She glanced at the red mare in the stall next to her. The horse was pacing about her stall, tossing her head up and down as she walked. This action greatly concerned Ren as Garnet was a naturally calm horse. Ren took a few steps back and looked into the next stall where she kept on of her two Clydesdales. The large animal was also shifting about in his stall, clearly nervous about something. Glancing into the remaining stall, Ren saw that the third horse was acting much the same way as her companions.

"Somethin's wrong…" Ren muttered aloud.

Nate walked closer to observe the three animals themselves. "What do you thinks wrong with them?"

Ren scratched her cheek in thought. "I don't know. They're all nervous about somethin. I just can't figure out what…" Glancing around the stable, Ren said, "Will you help me take a quick look around to see if maybe there's somethin around that might be scarin 'em?"

Nate nodded, "Of course."

The two quickly set out to scan the inside and outside of the stable but by the time they were finished, neither could find anything particularly concerning. Ren bit her bottom lip as she tried to think of what could be causing her beloved animals such worry. Sighing, she decided to write it off for the time being and hope that it was nothing serious. Perhaps just a snake or something somewhere that neither she nor Nate could find. "Let's just go to the house. Hopefully it's nothin serious," Ren finally said after a moment of silence.

Nate shrugged, "Alright."

As Nate and Ren neared the porch of Ren's two story log house, they saw Melanie standing on the porch smoking a cigarette and texting away on her Iphone. When the brown haired woman caught sight of them, she put out her cigarette and left it in the ash tray that Ren had specifically bought for her best friend to use. "About time. What were you two doin out there?" Melanie questioned, having seen Nate circling the stable as if looking for something.

"The horses have been actin a bit strange today," Ren began to explain to Melanie. "I asked Nate if he wouldn't mind helpin me look around to see if we could spot whatever might be botherin 'em…"

"Did you find anything?" Melanie asked.

Ren shook her head. "No. Nothin." Sighing, Ren motioned towards the door. "Let's go on in so I can take a quick shower." She walked passed her friend and opened the door. Stepping inside, she called out over her shoulder. "You two figure out what you wanna do tonight. I don't much care."

"Kay!" Melanie answered before turning her attention to her boyfriend.

"You two decide where we're goin tonight?" Ren asked as she stepped back into the living room. Melanie and Nate glanced away from the tv which was on the news. The reporter was currently talking about the cases of cannibalism that had been popping up across the world.

Melanie smiled at her friend as she took in her appearance. "Well aren't you lookin lovely?" Ren looked down at herself as she assessed her clothing. She wore a simple bright blue, button down shirt with the sleeves folded up to her elbows and a pair of fitted blue jeans. The outfit was completed with a pair of brown cowgirl boots, a heart shaped horse necklace, a woven horse-hair bracelet, and finally her favorite brown straw cowboy hat with a turquoise cross. Her golden hair was loosely braided and pulled to the side and she chose to wear no make-up. Honestly, to Ren, she didn't look that "lovely" as Melanie so eloquently put it. She looked normal. Nothing special or worth looking at. Just another face in the crowd of many.

Ren rolled her eyes playfully with a small smile on her face. "Yeah. Okay." Melanie and Nate both opened their mouths to retort but Ren cut them off before they could argue with her. "Anyways, you didn't answer the question."

"We thought maybe about going to either Gadsden or over to Rome," Nate answered, knowing that Ren didn't want to talk anymore about her looks.

Ren thought the options over before giving her opinion. "Maybe we should go to Rome. We go to Gadsden often enough as it is, so it would be a nice change…" She paused for a moment, another idea suddenly coming to mind. "Both of you are off for the next few days aren't ya?" The two on the couch exchanged curious glances with each other as they nodded in confirmation. Ren bit her lip as the idea began to swirl in her head. Shifting her weight onto her left foot, Ren suggested, "How about we go camping, instead? Maybe over at the Chattahoochee National Forest? Could load up the horses and go riding… I don't know."

Neither Melanie nor Nate spoke for a moment. Ren started to message her left hand as she often did when she became nervous. _I shouldn't have said anything, _she thought to herself. Ren started to open her mouth and tell them to dismiss the idea, but Nate began to speak instead. "That…actually sounds like a good idea. We haven't had a chance to do anything like that in a long time."

Melanie smiled and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it'll be fun." She looked over at her boyfriend. "We'll just have to go back to the house and pack a few things." She turned her attention back to Ren. "Then, we'll come back and head out. I guess we'll all be goin in your truck?"

Ren nodded, "Yeah. Uh, you guys got camping gear? I mean, we can all fit in the trailer, but it would be a bit cramped…"

"Yeah, got a tent, couple of sleeping bags….I can bring some other things too. Lighters, flashlights, some food and water…" Nate mentioned.

Ren let out a small, almost inaudible, sigh of relief. It may have been her idea, but Ren wasn't exactly looking forward to sleeping in close quarters with the couple that would most likely become engaged that weekend. And Ren knew that the two would more than likely want to have sex at _least_ once while on their trip. God help her.

"Good. Good. I'll try and take care of the rest. If I think of something we'll need and I don't have it, I'll call or text you to see if you do. If not, we can always stop at the store." The three exchanged a few more words before Melanie and Nate finally decided to go back home to pack for the trip.

Ren sighed once more as she closed the door behind them. A nervous knot had found its way into her stomach and Ren found herself thinking that something bad was going to happen while they were away. She glanced over at her television. It was still on the news. Along the bottom, a red bar scrolled across the screen revealing the inclining number of cases of people eating other people.

A hard frown stretched across Ren's face. Perhaps she should consider bringing a few forms of protection. Just in case.

* * *

><p>AN: Hello, my lovely readers. This is the first Walking Dead fanfiction I've decided to try and post. I've had other ideas but decided that I wanted to go with this one first and see how it turns out. This prologue was a bit of an introduction to three of my currently planned OCs - Seren (Ren)Rhys, Nate Chandler, and Melanie Hawthorn. If you wish to have a little bit of a better idea as to what the three of them look like then these three actor and actresses are the ones to look up.

Amy Gumenick - Playing Ren. She plays a young Mary Winchester in the series Supernatural.

Kaniehtiio Horn - Playing Melanie. She also plays Dorothy in Supernatural as well as Destiny Rumancek in Hemlock Grove.

Joe Dempsie - Playing Nate. He appears in the Game of Thrones as Gendry Waters. So look up Gendry and that is what Nate will more or less look like.

Finally, though I have not decided yet, I'm considering the possibility of keeping Sophia alive. Feel free to give me your opinions on the story and if you have any ideas for the story, you're welcome to share those as well. I will give credit were credit is due should I use anybodies idea. One final thing, Updates to the story will probably be slow due to college as well as other stories that I have that I should work on. I will try to keep from taking too long to update but I will make no promises. I hope you enjoyed the prologue. Bye for now!


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One

"_For there is no friend like a sister in calm or stormy weather; To cheer one on the tedious way, to fetch one if one goes astray, to lift one if one totters down, to strengthen whilst one stands." Christina Rossetti_

Ren tapped the breaks of her black Chevy Silverado as the truck rolled closer to a large traffic snarl in the highway. Coming to a stop, she threw the gear in park and cut off the engine. She sat there for a moment, wondering what she should do. It was evident that if she tried to continue forwards that there were going to be some problems. Sighing, she turned in her seat and lightly shook Nate awake who had been sleeping in the back seat. The man jumped slightly at being shaken. "Wah?"

"Wake up, Nate. We've got a bit of a problem," Ren told the man. Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper, as to not wake up the snoozing woman in the passenger seat.

Nate sat up as he tried to stifle a yawn. "What is it?"

Ren looked away from Nate and back out the windshield. "Take a look for yourself." Nate followed her gaze and instantly understood what Ren had meant by them having a problem.

"Shit," he hissed at the sight of so many cars. Most of which were abandoned, but some were still occupied by the dead. They could only hope that the dead were the official kind.

Ren reached over to the dashboard and grabbed the closed map. She tossed it back to Nate. "You sure this is the way to your uncle's?"

She saw Nate nod in the rearview mirror. "Yeah. Been here often enough to know. I think we're only a few miles from the farm."

"Is there a back way we can go through instead?" Ren asked.

Nate studied the map for a few moments, not immediately answering the question. The only sound in the truck was Melanie's light snoring and the rustling of the map. "Ah!" Nate exclaimed a bit louder than he had meant.

Melanie jumped in her seat, having been startled awake by her fiancé's sudden exclamation. She looked around and noticed that they had come to a stop. "What's going on?" she inquired groggily.

Ren motioned for her friend to look out the window. "Got a bit of a road block. Nate's seeing if we can take another road to his uncle's."

"And I've found it," Nate added as he leaned forward, shoving the map up front so that the two women could see it as well. He pointed to a road that Ren believed was about a mile back the way they had come. "If we go back and turn on that road, follow it for about two miles, turn right, go down till the end of that road, and turn right again, we should be at the end of Fairburn road. We'd just have to drive until we see their mail box."

Ren nodded as she turned the engine back on. "Alright." She carefully backed up a ways until she knew there was enough room to turn her truck and horse trailer around without much problem.

As Ren concentrated on her task, Melanie turned in her seat so that she could have a better look at Nate. She frowned at the clear enthusiasm shown on his face as he stared down at the map in his lap. Melanie didn't want to be a pessimist, but she knew there was a chance that they would get to the farm and find that his uncle and cousins were no longer alive. "Babe…" she began, not sure if she should really say anything or not.

Nate glanced up and saw the concern on his beautiful fiancé's face. "What is it?" he asked, though he had a feeling he already knew the answer.

Melanie sighed heavily. "You know that…that there's a chance they might not be, uh, alive…Right?"

Nate pursed his lips at the thought. "You mean, they might be a Reaper, right?" Melanie hesitated for a second, but nodded her head anyways. Nate sighed, "Yeah, I've considered it. And if they are, we'll do the right thing." By the right thing, he meant killing them for good. Neither Melanie nor Nate said anymore on the subject.

From the driver's seat, Ren kept her gaze straight ahead. She wanted to tell the two that things would be alright, but Ren knew better than that. She didn't want to give them any false hope but she knew without any hope, that their lives would become utterly miserable. Instead of saying anything though, Ren turned on the stereo so that the mixed CD would start to play. Out of the speakers came Ricky Martin's "Livin La Vida Loca." A smile spread across the three occupants' faces.

"_Upside, Inside out!_

_She's livin la vida loca!_

_She'll push and pull you down,_

_Livin la vida loca_

_Her lips are devil red_

_And her skin's the color mocha_

_She will wear you out_

_Livin la vida loca_

_Come on!" _

They sang along as Ren continued to drive the directions that Nate had given her. Several minutes passed as they sang along to various songs until Ren slowed down beside a mailbox with the name "Greene" painted on the side. She turned into the driveway only to be stopped by a gate.

"I'll get it," Nate said as he opened his door and jumped out of the truck. Unhitching the gate, Nate pushed it open to allow Ren to drive on through. Locking the gate back, Nate ran back to the truck and hopped back in. "It's a straight shot now."

Ren nodded as she pressed the gas. It took them only two minutes to come in view of an old, white farmhouse. However, the scene they came upon was one that they had not expected. There in the front yard, under the shade of a small cluster of trees, were several tents and an RV. There were people milling about until they had seemed to notice that an unknown vehicle was coming down the drive.

Ren came to a complete stop but didn't make a move to cut off the engine nor to get out. "What the hell?" Nate muttered as he took in the sight of so many people, none of which were his family. For a moment, panic began to rise up in the man. What if his family was dead? What if these people had killed them? Though, surely if they had killed his uncle and his family, they would have just moved into the house and not bother with the tents, unless there were a whole lot of them.

When a familiar figure stepped out onto the porch of the house, Nate let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God." Nate didn't hesitate to open his door and jump out of the Silverado. "Uncle Hershel!" he called out as he jogged towards the house with a large grin on his face.

Ren and Melanie stayed inside of the running truck. Even if Nate's uncle was still there, that didn't mean that the others were not hostile. The three had the unfortunate pleasure of coming in contact with a few less than pleasant people. Melanie watched sadly as Nate ran to his uncle and enveloped the older man into a warm hug. Ren didn't have to look over at her long-time friend to know that something was wrong. "You're sad," Ren stated, not once moving her gaze from the people that had begun to crowd around Nate and his uncle, Hershel Greene. It didn't take much for Ren to guess why, but she knew that the brunette would probably feel better talking about it before they got out of the truck.

Ren heard a sigh from beside her. "Don't get me wrong. You know I'm happy that he still has family left, but I can't help but be a little sad…and jealous," Melanie confessed to her best friend.

"I know. No one can blame you though," Ren answered. "To see someone reunite with their loved ones now a day is both a beautiful and heartbreaking event. It's beautiful because it is such a rarity and heartbreaking because it is a reminder to those who have lost everyone that they can't have that moment." Ren finally looked at Melanie and saw her eyes were a little watery. She smiled at the curly haired brunette. "It's okay to be a little jealous of those who get their moment and it's okay to be sad that you can't have one like it. But you still have a family, you know."

Melanie scrunched her eyebrows at Ren's last statement. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you have a wonderful fiancé who still plans on making you his wife, even if you can't have an ideal wedding. You now have his family who you will soon meet and get to know. Heck, who knows? Maybe these other people will become like a family to you as well." Ren smiled brightly as she added, "And you also have me. Remember? Best friends are sibling that we choose to be family with."

Melanie let out a heartfelt laugh as she whipped her eyes. "Yeah, you're right. As always."

"Of course I am," Ren replied, her smile turning into a full blown grin.

Melanie rolled her eyes at the blonde's faux cockiness. "Shut up!" The two women continued to laugh until Melanie's door opened. They jerked their heads towards the door only to see Nate standing there.

"We're good. Uncle Hershel says we can stay. Why don't you two get out so we can do introductions?"

Ren suddenly felt her stomach tighten at the thought of being around so many unfamiliar people. Sure, she knew that she would be around strangers when they decided to try for Nate's uncle's farm, but she certainly was not expecting it to be so many; though no one could really blame her for being nervous. Especially after the last group they had come across in their travels.

Ren started to bit her lip and wring her hands. She had never been very good with large groups of people to begin with, unless she was performing. Growing up, Ren had been a rather shy and quiet girl. She had a tendency to withdraw around people she didn't know and only spoke when spoken too. It wasn't until she got to really know someone that she became more vocal. The fact that these were dangerous times did not help ease Ren's nerves either.

Melanie, having known Ren since kindergarten, knew that her friend was beginning to withdraw into herself. The brunette reached over and squeezed one of the blonde's hands reassuringly. "Remember what you just told a few minutes ago? The same applies to you as well." Nate, who was still standing at the open door, switched his gaze between the two women curiously but made no comment.

"We should probably get out now," Ren mumbled as her cyan eyes trailed back to the front windshield. She could see that about fifteen people were standing around waiting for her and Melanie to join them for what Ren supposed would be introductions. _Let's get this over with, _Ren thought begrudgingly before popping her door open.

* * *

><p>AN: So here is chapter one. I know it's kinda short, but the chapters will probably get longer once I start writing along with the episodes. By the way, I know I said I might keep Sophia alive, but I've decided not to go with that idea. Anyways, I hope this chapter was alright. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please if you must criticize, I ask that you don't be rude. Bye for now!


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